Let us dance our way towards fitness in 2019

Are you desperate to get back into shape but a little wary of the strenuous gym sessions? Don’t worry. Cutting the flab can be fun. Just dance your way to fitness. And it works for one and sundry. As Uday Raj Anand, co-founder, Crush Fitness India, says, “The fitness and wellness craze seems to be all over the social media but the truth remains that a vast segment of the population remains outside the envelope of regular exercise. In our experience, dance fitness has been a very effective way to help people make that first step towards fitness.”  

The reasons are obvious. The environment of a dance fitness class is by definition non-judgemental and focused more on letting loose than becoming uber-conscious of the body. Nupur Banerji, co-founder, director and head instructor, Zink Fitness Studio, adds,  “Dance fitness sessions are cardio workouts that are way more interesting than a treadmill or an elliptical cycle. Reaching the end of a cardio session on a treadmill is an uphill task whereas at the end of the dance fitness session, you are left wondering where all those 60 minutes went? In every session, one can burn around 600-800 calories and not even 
realise the hard work that went into it.” Most importantly, it is fun! 

The trick lies in some clever adaptation of most forms of dance. At Crush Club, Anand utilises five forms of dance as the base foundation of dance fitness class - Bhangra, Salsa, Bollywood, Merengue and Hip Hop. “Jazz is used as a link form to hold all these others together in a coherent format. Each form is used to target a different aspect of fitness. For instance, Bhangra is typically utilized as a high-intensity form with a greater focused on ‘bouncy’ steps that mimic plyometric exercise.

The overhead movement of hands in many steps increases the heart rate, while the jumps train calves and quads. Salsa, on the other hand trains core control, hip mobility and we use it as active recovery with lower intensity to allow people to catch their breaths without having to stop. Merengue has small and quick foot movements to train agility, and in some forms of Hip Hop we focus on muscle isolation,” he quips. It is essential to include a warmup as part of any exercise regimen before your exercise, as well as a cool down post workout. 

There are certain precautions to be keep in mind before getting ready to groove. “Anyone with knee/back injuries, post surgery or post-pregnancy, even during the pregnancy needs to consult a doctor before beginning this or any other workout program,” says Banerji.

It is not gender-specific. Banerji, who has bee teaching various dance fitness formats for the last six years, adds, “Men do group classes too. In fact, what a lot of people don’t know is that the founder of one of the hottest dance fitness programs is a man and there’s absolutely no reason why men should shy away from a good cardio workout.”

So come, dance your way to fitness in 2019.